New Delhi, Nov 29 (IANS): Online higher education company upGrad on Monday announced that it has entered into an exclusive acquisition agreement with Global Study Partners (GSP), Australia's largest study abroad company.

upGrad will invest $16 million to buy 100 per cent of GSP and commit a further $10 million for future growth. GSP is slated to close its current financials at a GMV of over $10 million, which will grow fourfold in the coming year.

"As an Integrated EdTech leader - we span the entire gamut of a learner's need from the age of 18-50, and in that, Study Abroad is a key growth initiative for us - not just out of India which is one of the two largest markets but also for our learners internationally," Ronnie Screwvala, Chairperson and Co-Founder, upGrad said in a statement.

Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Sydney, GSP boasts of an institution network of 600 plus, predominantly in major western destination countries (Australia, the UK, Canada, and the US) and 1,300 plus recruitment partners - that include education and migration agents, schools, test preparation centres, alumni associations, etc.

Acquisition of GSP marks the first international acquisition for the edtech leader and strengthens its foray in Study Abroad, one of the fastest-growing segments worldwide.

upGrad, which offers more than 100 courses in collaboration with top-notch global/local universities like Deakin Business School (Australia), Duke CE (US), Michigan State University (US), Liverpool Business School (UK), IIT Madras (India), IIM Kozhikode (India) and others, has empowered over 10 lakh registered learners over 50 countries across the world.

In 2021 till March, jointly with the recruitment and staffing solutions firm Rekrut India which is now a 100 per cent subsidiary of upGrad, the company has enabled over 2,500 career transitions, with a highest salary hike of 400 per cent (a package of Rs 73 lakh per annum).